Nut-tightening device.



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enonen c. rannnnn, or strain, onto.

NUT-TGHTENXNG DEVCE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mair. ti, felled..

Application led May 39, 1914. Serial No. 341,831.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that 1, GEORGE C. Fnnnnnn, a citizen of the United States, residing at Elyria, in the county of Lorain and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Nut-Tightening Device, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatus particularly adapted for use in tightening nuts on the screw threaded ends of bolts, and more particularly relates to apparatus for tightening the nuts screwed on the cap bolts of the roll and pinion housings of rolling mills in' securing the housing caps in piace on the housings. Heretofore it has been the practice in tightening the nuts on the cap bolts of such housings to turn the nut by placing a wrench on and then turning the nut by striking the wrench with a heavy Sledge, or with a dolly-bar suspended. by a sling from overhead. In changing rolls as is frequently necessary in the operation of rolling mills, the rolling operations must be interrupted and it is a matter of great im; portance that the rolls be changed as quickly as possible, so time required in changing the rolls is shortened effects a great saving in the operating cost of such mills. j

One object of my invention is to provide a novel apparatus for tightening such -nuts by the use of which the nuts are rapidly turned and tightened in place or are unscrewed in loosening and backing olf the nuts without the use of sledges and dollybars, and without the resulting battering of the nuts and wrenches accompanying the use of sledges, dolly-bars and similar appliances.

Referring to the drawings forming part of this specification Figure 1 is a side elevation of a roll housing showing one way in which my improved nut tightening apparatus is applied for use in Vturning the cap bolt nut of a roll or pinion housing, in tightening or loosening such nuts. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation, on an enlarged scale, showing my improved apparatus in detail.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the appa-` ratus shown in Fig. 9., the section being taken on the dine Ill-HI of Fig. Q.

1n the accompanying drawings, the numeral '2 designates one of the roll housings of a rolling mill.' Ordinarily, there are two that any means by which thev such rollhousings, each having a windoivY 3 in which top bearings fi and and bottom bearings 6 and 7 for\the necks 8 and 9 of the rollsare mounted so as to be adjustable and a pair of pinion housings, of similar construction, for the roll lpinions in each-eo stand of rolls. Each of thehousings 2 isi,

provided with a removable cap 10 the typetl of housings shown being what is known as an open top housing.v rlhe caps 10 are held in position on the housing by means of cap bolts 11, 11 each of these cap bolts having a nut 12 on the screw threaded upper end thereof. The housing caps 10 are also provided with the usual housing screws 13 by which the rolls are held in adjusted position within the housing windows 3.

Suspended by a sling Afrom the crane. hook of a traveling crane or jib crane, with onel or both of which every rolling mill is provided, is my improved nut turning apparatus. As will be seen by reference to Fig. 2, this apparatus comprises a 'vertical spindle or shaft 1-1 having an eye l5 on its screw threaded upper end, to which the sling is attached. A. pin is employed to prevent the eye 15 from unscrewing The spindle 1li extends through the hushed opening in the sleeve 16 and this sleeve is provided on its lower end with a flange 17 having a lug 18 on one side thereof. 'lhe sleeve 16 which has a bushing 19 therein, is keyed or otherwise fastened in the hub 2O of the ily-wheel 21 so as to turn with the ily-wheel. A set collar on the spindle .1d at the upper end of the sleeve 16, having a set screw therein, is employed to keep the ily-wheel in position on the spindle. r1`he riin of the ilywheel 21 is provided on its uppersurface with a series of handles 2l which are positioned. to project upwardly at separate intervals on the rim of the fly-wheel.

The lower end of the spindle 11 is provided with a flangejl having lug 26 on one side thereof. Also. secured on the lower end of the spindle 14; below thellange Q5 is a socket 27 having a recess 39 therein which is arranged to embrace the sides of the nuts 12 on the housing screws when operatively engaging one of these nuts. .The lower end Q8 of the spindle 1a is hexagonal in cross section and a pin'27 is employed to secure the socket 27 in place on the end 28 of the spindle.

As the fly-wheel 21 is arranged to turn on the spindle le, a ball bearing formed of a series of balls 29, inner and outer rings 30 and 31 forming the ball cage, and race rings 32 and 33 is provided between the adjacent faces of the flange 17 on the lovver end of the sleeve 16, and the flange 25 on the lower end of the spindle 14, this ball bearing lessening the friction and enabling the fly-Wheel 21 to be turned on the spindle with less manual edort on the part of the operator. Dowel pins 34 in the registering openings of the flanges 17 and 25 and race vrings 32, 33 retain the rings in place against the faces of the flanges.

Positioned within a hole in the lug 18 of the flange 17 on the sleeve 16 is a plug 35 which is held in place by means of a set screw 3G, and positioned within a hole in the lug 26 on the flange 25 of the spindle 16 is a similar plug 37, held in place by a set screw 38 the projecting ends of these plugs being arranged to engage in operatively connecting the fly-wheel 2l to the spindle 14 'when turning the spindle by means of the fly-wheel.

lin the operation of my improved apparatus, the parts are permanently assembled as shown in Fig. 2, the socket 27 having a recess 39 therein which is hexagonal in cross section and of a size to fit the hexagon nuts 12 on the cap bolts 11 of the roll housings. The crane or other structure :from which the apparatus is suspended is 'then employed to move the apparatus into position above the nut 12 to be loosened or tightened on its cap screw. The apparatus then lowered to bring the socket into position so as to emliracethe nut. The operator then turns the fly-wheel121 by means of the handles 24, continuously rotating or spinning the fly-Wheel so long as the nut 12 turns freely on the screw thread of the cap bolt 1l.. l/Vhen it is desired to tighten or jam the nut on the bolt, the fly-wheel is moved backwardly fora part of a revolutio-n and then caused to turn rapidlyin the opposite direction. When this is done the plug on the sleeve engages with the plug on the flange of the spindle 1land the momentum of the rapidly turning fly-wheel 2l has the same effect in tightening the nut as that heretofore secured by the use of the Sledge or dolly-bar. The fly-wheel after being almost instantly brought to rest is again moved backwardly and again rapidly turned to cause the plugs 35 and 37 to engage and by their engagement to force the .uut 1.2 tightly into holding position, these operations being continued as long as necessary in tightening the cap bolt. The nut tightening apparatus is then removed to `another of the nuts and the above described operations are repeated, each of the lnuts te be tightened being successively operated upon. When it is desired to loosen the guts 12 the apparatus is again brought 1nto position as has been described, and the apparause the necessity of using a Sledge or dollyj bar to move the Wrench in loosening and tightening the nuts of the large cap screws of rolling mill housings and similar heavy apparatus where the nuts have to be frequently tightened and loosened, is avoided and overcome.

The apparatus is simple and durable, and will last for an indefinite period without re-v quiring expensive repairs. By its use the time required in tightening and loosening such nuts is materially lessened, the time necessary in changing the rolls of a rolling mill is greatly reduced, and the expense connected with the roll changes so frequently necessary in the operation of a rolling mill is thereby reduced.

Modifications in the construction and arrangement of the parts forming my improved nut tightening apparatus may be made without departing from my invention as defined in the claims.

I claim 1. Nut tightening apparatus comprising a flanged spindle having a nut engaging socket on one end thereof, a flanged sleeve mounted to turn on the spindle having a fly Wheel thereon, an anti-friction bearing between the flanges of the sleeve and thc spindle and projecting means on the adjoining faces of the flanges whereby the spindle is caused to turn with the sleeve.

2. Nut tightening apparatus comprising a flanged spindle having a nut engaging socket on one end thereof, a flanged sleeve mounted to turn on the spindle having a fly Wheel thereon, a roller bearing between the adjoining faces of the flanges on said sleeve and spindle and means on said flanges whereby the spindle and socket are caused to turn with the sleeve and fly Wheel.

3. Nut tightening apparatus comprising a flanged spindle having a nut engaging socket on one end thereof, a flanged sleeve mounted to turn on the spindle having a fly-wheel thereon, and removable plugs on said flanges arranged to engage and thereby cause the spindle and socket to turn with the sleeve and fly-wheel.

4. Nut tightening apparatus comprising a flanged spindle having a nut engaging mennen socket on one end thereof, a Hengedl s'leeve Tin whereof, have henennn Elounledl t turn (n thev spinl having a; set my hemd. e

yW ee t ereon ugs on sai anges and A 1 plugs removablysecured to the' lugs and @EGBGB C' MARKRLL arranged to en age, to thereby cause the Witnesses:

spindle and soc et Ibo turn with the sleeve E. L. Blaas,

and y-Wheel. ANDREW TnnMnn. 

